Category: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

If there is something that the English Middle Age literature is definitely famous for, these are the numerous legends about knights, beautiful damsels and King Arthur; and, one must give these legends some credit for keeping its audience well in their seats for several centuries long.

However, it seems rather unfair that the legend of such a peculiar historical character as Sir Gawain has been in the shadow of more popular ones like Sir Galahad or King Arthur; just as compelling and, for that matter, more complex story of the knight who in one kind of sources is portrayed as the saving grace, and in another as a lady-killer is definitely worth taking a closer look at, which the story about Sir Gawain and the Green Knight will help in.

The work belongs to the genre of poetry. Although there is no actual rhyme in the given piece, the way it is structured clearly shows that this is a poem; for instance, the line “At the head sat Bishop Baldwin as Arthur’s guest of honor” (Armitage 27) breaks, and the sentence continues on the next line; the given manner of writing is typical for poetry with obvious elements of a narrative and dramatic style.

Indeed, too short to be epic, it still has the tension of drama (the line “exchanging views” (27), for instance, bears a lot of hidden innuendoes) and the pace of a third-person narration.

Like any other poem, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight has its evident prosodic elements; however, they are quite different from what is defined as poetry today.

For instance, as it has been already mentioned, there is no rhyme (“himself –views – Guinevre” (Armitage 27)), nor is there any specific meter: “And still he stands there just being himself” (Armitage 27) does not fit into any of the existing meters.

However, written in the era of the “Alliterative Revival”, it does have a lot of alliterations in every line. Indeed, taking any line, one can see the repetitive pattern: in “and at Arthur’s other side sits Agrawain the Hard Hand”, there are three clear-cut instances of alliteration.

First of all, the sound “a” is stressed: “and at Arthur’s”, “Agrawain” (Armitage 27); then, “s” is emphasized: “side sits”; finally, the harsh “h” sound echoes in the end of the line: “Hard Hand”. Another instance of alliteration, “Bishop Baldwin” makes it clear that this stylistic device was intended (Armitage 27).

The poem also has several peculiar symbols to consider. In the given excerpt, Sir Gawain is the symbol himself – the symbol of the whole idea of knighthood, with its codes of honor, luxurious feasts and specific hierarchy.

Mentioning the way the guests are seated, the author stresses the latter, showing the specific relationships between the characters.

For instance, the fact that Guinevere sits next to Gawain: “Good Sir Gawain is seated by Guinevere” (37) points at the fact that there might be tension between these characters and that they are closely related to each other.

However, mentioning all these characters, the real author of the story stays in the shadow, which makes the narration a true legend, the ancient myth, the veracity of which cannot be checked, and that adds certain charm to the poem.

Although the author mentions the names of actual people who did exist, according to the historical record, it is rather hard to pin the actual year when the events took place. Known as the XIV-century tale, this piece is practically timeless.

Nevertheless, the elements of the given poem can relate to a number of other literature works of the given time period, mostly owing to the legendary names mentioned in the excerpt, such as King Arthur, Guinevere, and the rest of the characters.

In addition, the whole idea of knighthood which the extract is shot through relates well to most of the literature works of the given time slot. Indeed, the idea of describing the life of “the nobles” (Armitage 27) is quite common for the given epoch.

Despite being a translation of the original Middle English poem, the given piece is still very impressive. It helps create the atmosphere of the famous Camelot and imagine the people who lived there in the most graphic way.

Telling not only about the history of England, but also emphasizing the significance of fraternity and togetherness which ruled in the XIV century Camelot, the given poem truly is a work of art.

Therefore, it is clear that the story of Sir Gawain is typical for its time period and reflects the standard set of values, yet it manages to convey the traditional messages about purity in a specific way.

It is quite peculiar that the poem is not preachy in sharing the moral values of the Middle Ages with the readers; in addition, there is little of the self-appraise element in the poem, which is also quite unusual for the time period of the Knights of the Round Table.

With its story which is easy to track and the pace which is easy to follow, the poem makes a perfect specimen of the English Middle Age literature.

Works Cited

Armitage, Simon. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. New York City, NY: W. W. Norton & Company, 2007. Print.

A hero is regarded as any individual who possesses exceptional and outstanding qualities, especially in circumstances where others have contemplated failure or given up. In other words, a hero is somebody who does an outstanding action that many people would not dare to try. Gawain can be considered as a hero in this poem due to his unique displays of determination, self-control and humility throughout the plot of the poem (Thomas 7).

Gawain finds himself in tough situations that can jeopardize his life but his daring character keeps him on course to fulfill his promise of an immortal character. Like most heroes, he has his own weaknesses but the exemplary display and determination overshadows his shortcomings. He ends up being recognized in the whole Camelot city and reveals certain secrets that have long been unknown to many residents of the state.

As the immortal Green Knight appears at Arthur’s Christmas party, all the knights at the round table are frightened. The fear is further increased by the challenge the Green Knight pauses and whose ultimate prize is not known by anyone. None of the knights who are considered to be the toughest military figures dare to take the challenge, “and none among them all dare answer speedily” (Stone line 437).

Gawain, to everyone’s surprise steps up to take the challenge to save Arthur’s face. This definitely brings out the his courageous character. He is willing to take on a mighty giant regardless of the risk lying ahead when everybody else is unwilling: “I pray thee of thy grace, be this adventure mine!” (Alfred & James line 519).

Gawain also proves to be a hero when he chops off the head of the Green Knight in a single stroke. He puts his life on the scales with the hope that the Green Knight would die in this fight. Nevertheless, he is willing to keep the promise he made to the Green Knight and is ready to have whatever he did on the Green Knight be done on him at an agreed place, “That stroke for counter-stroke with me exchange” (Alfred & James line 582). This is a unique action that none of the military knights could perform, and this makes Gawain a true hero.

It is obvious that he is lucky enough to find Bertilak who offers him accommodation as he awaits the fateful encounter with the immortal knight. However, it is at the Bertilak’s castle that he finds a real test for his self-control. Bertilak’s wife freely offers herself to Gawain: “Do though in bed abide, and take thine ease I pray” (Alfred & James line 1026).

She does all she can when the husband is away to spend a night with Gawain as it is later revealed that it was a planned trap to test Gawain’s lustful power. Gawain is not aware of the plan but is wise enough to find his way out and by so doing he proves to be a hero again, as he is strong enough to avoid the temptations from this lady and not to betray his host who has been so generous to him.

He manages to coil around and only accepts a kiss daily from the lady. This again saves him of the trap ahead of him when Bertilak suggests that they offer to each other their daily spoils. While Bertilak brings game meat to Gawain daily, she is paid back with a kiss from Gawain since this is what he gets from the wife: “Whate’er in wood I win, the profit thine shall be, what cheer though shall achieve, halt give me” (Alfred & James line 1058).

One could wonder what Gawain would have paid back with should he had fallen for the sexual favors from Bertilak’s tempting wife. Here, he is regarded a hero by the society not only for managing his lust but also for taking the best option that saved him from falling into Bertilak’s trap.

The final encounter with the Green Knight is blood curdling and chilling. In fact, when Gawain is about to meet the knight, the guide accompanying him promises not to let out the secret if Gawain changes his mind and turns down the earlier promise made to the Knight of which Gawain declines: ”whereof, Gawain good, let this man alone” (Alfred & James line 1088).

Gawain is so terrified on the first occasion when the Knight tries to wield the ax until the Knight is forced to pull back and he demands for more courage from him. The hero Gawain does not even flinch on the second attempt when the knight tries a blow on him. In a surprising turn of events, it is Gawain who urges the knight to go through with it and fulfill the promise. It is interesting how Gawain has built up courage to face the giant Green Knight and the promise is fulfilled as earlier stated.

Thus, Gawain is considered a hero for his massive courage and determination to meet the Knight’s challenge. His journey to the meeting point was made amidst hunger, cold, and desperation. Any other person could have contemplated giving up but Gawain kept to his course. Above all, he remained optimistic that nothing bad would befall him and that he would live to retell the story in Camelot. It indeed takes a hero to do this.

Finally, Gawain meets his prize and takes back the good news. King Arthur is surprised by the revelations from Gawain’s journey and encounter. When Gawain sets out for the encounter he had nothing for his protection unlike the Knight who seemed to possess supernatural skills.

Hence, the chances of him surviving the ordeal and coming back to Camelot (Greenblatt 2006). The Green Knight had promised to pay back with equal intensity whatever the challenge involved and now that Gawain chopped off the Knight’s head, little was expected of him since he had no powers to return back the head like the Knight had done.

The whole Camelot is surprised when Gawain arrives back, and besides he brings forth news of the King’s kinsmen. No doubt, this is good news to the king and explains why all the military knights wear girdles around their wrists in honor of Gawain. Although they do not know the events that led Gawain to wear the girdle, they freely agree to wear the girdle to show respect and appreciation for him.

This treatment by the knights towards Gawain shows the heroic concern accorded to him for his daring spirit to go yonder, fight and bring forth secrets of the king’s lineage. He definitely qualifies to be a hero for his accomplishment (Greenblatt 2006).

Everyone is left wondering what Gawain’s next course of action will be. His ambition and determination leave everyone surprised. For instance, why should he put his life on the line to save King Arthur? He sets out to meet the Green Knight with little information about him and he is still determined to his course even when he knows that the end result might be the loss of his life.

It is evident that he is doing this for fame and building a reputation for himself. He then qualifies to be called a hero in the society when he opens up to the Knight and accepts to have not offered to the knight everything he got from Bertilak’s wife.

Gawain also confesses and repents of his sin and agrees to wear the girdle as a sign of his sins and begs the Knight to pardon him: “Thy plea I beseech” (Alfred & James line 2034). Furthermore, the Knight notes that Gawain values his life more than being honest implying that Gawain is also concerned about his reputation and the public opinion about him (Burrow 2005).

It is the public reputation that makes a hero and Gawain like any other individual with heroic ambitions pays much attention to the outward reputation and this is definitely the reason why Gawain repents of his sins and seeks forgiveness since he knows the Knight might reveal the same in Camelot.

In this case, he is regarded as a hero since he accepts his weakness and makes an effort to make a good name. Very few people can make such a decision like that taken by Gawain given that only the Green Knight and he knew of this trap to test his integrity.

Works Cited

Alfred, David & James Simpson. The Norton Anthology: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2006. Print.

Burrow, James. A Reading of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. London, UK: Kegan Paul Ltd., 2005. Print.

Greenblatt, Stephen. The Norton Anthology of English Literature, London, UK: W.W. Norton and Co., 2006. Print.

Stone, Brian. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. London, UK: Penguin, 2004.Print.

Thomas, Gary. Your Research Project. New York, NY: Sage, Rudestam & Newton, 2009. Print.

The bedroom and hunting scenes in “Sir Gawain and the Green Knight” are two parallel lines of storytelling, united by the same meaning. In addition, despite the differences in content, descriptions, and even the length of the text, there are many common elements in these episodes. The author combines them since they are two components of one narrative episode. The reason for the narrative appearance of these scenes is a deal made between Gawain and the lord of the castle where he stayed. They agreed to give each other what they caught in a day for three days (Weston, 1898). Consequently, from this point on, the narrative splits into two parallel lines that show the reader the perspective of the lord and Gawain throughout the day.

However, this division also implies some comparison of the activities of both men. Just as the lord needs to hunt and overcome difficulties, Gawain must be extremely careful to conduct a dialogue with the lord’s wife, by all means avoiding her attempts to seduce. From a certain point of view, the reader has the opportunity to observe a comparison of two hunting processes – literal and allegorical, which a woman leads concerning a knight. With each subsequent day, this procedure becomes more complex. On the first day, the lord goes out to hunt deer, a relatively simple and easy process. At the same time, his wife makes the first attempt to seduce the knight without showing strong persistence (Weston, 1898). The next day, both the intensity of the hunt and seduction increase. Finally, the third day is the culmination and also carries additional meaning, as there is a hunt for a fox: a cunning animal that seeks to save its life. Gawain, like the fox, also tries to be cunning, which ultimately leads to hiding the sash given by the lord’s wife.

Thus, the combination of these scenes by the author serves as a means of representation. In addition, such examples most clearly convey the characters’ personalities since they find themselves in ambiguous situations. Gawain is tested by various temptations, undergoing tests of loyalty and the principles of virtue. These three scenes show us Gawain as a man of chivalry and courtesy. However, in doing so, the reader is shown a conflict between the word given by the lord and the duty to keep the gift from the lady. The knight resolves this conflict by favoring the lady, remaining faithful to her. Having gone through all the temptations and seductions, he received a gift that allowed him to save his life, and Gawain protects it, putting the honor of the lady and his courtesy above the promise to the lord. Thus, the author shows us the knight as an imperfect person, despite all his knightly virtue. The reader sees that despite all his heroism, in the end, Gawain does not part with the gift that can save him from a terrible fate.

This moment is key to understanding the entire text and the meaning inherent in it. The situations shown to the reader, hidden behind the images of the Green Knight, the lord, and his wife, reflect the conflicts typical of the literature of that time: the test of temptation and the opposition of man and nature. The first element is the classic elements of chivalrous novels – the heroes of the stories overcome certain temptations, which allows them to become stronger and receive powerful gifts. Against this background, a much larger and deeper confrontation unfolds between order expressed in the form of chivalry and the chaotic force of nature in the form of the shortcomings of the human personality. Thus, the analysis of these scenes allows a deeper understanding of Gawain himself as a character and to find elements that open up to the reader an understanding of the meanings inherent in the work.

Reference

Weston, J. (Trans.). (1898). Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. David Nutt.